Learn German A1 – Lesson 8: Work and profession

This is lesson 8 of the A1 German series on the OK+ channel, and its subject is Work and profession. It is built for someone starting from nothing who wants to use what they learn the same day, rather than collect rules that help neither in the street nor at the office.

The grammar it works on is Modalverben · trennbare Verben (anfangen). This page carries the rule explained, the fifteen words of the lesson, example sentences and an exercise for today.

Modalverben · trennbare Verben (anfangen)

The modal verbs — können, müssen, wollen, dürfen, sollen, möchten — reshape the whole sentence: the modal is conjugated and stands in second position, and the main verb is thrown to the end in its bare infinitive. Ich arbeite im Büro becomes, with möchte, Ich möchte im Büro arbeiten.
And if the main verb is separable, it returns whole to the end rather than splitting: Er muss um sieben Uhr anfangen.

The modal verbs and what they mean

The fifteen words of this lesson

Example sentences

• Ich kann Deutsch sprechen. — I can speak German.
• Er muss um sieben Uhr anfangen. — He has to start at seven.
• Darf ich hier rauchen? — May I smoke here?
• Wir wollen mehr verdienen. — We want to earn more.
• Sie möchte im Büro arbeiten. — She would like to work in an office.

Today's exercise

Write five sentences about your work, or the work you want, using a different modal verb in each. Then check that the main verb sits at the end of every sentence in its bare infinitive. That is the mistake this lesson produces more often than any other.

How to study this lesson

• Watch the lesson once end to end without stopping, to get the shape of it
• Watch it again, pausing at every new word and saying it aloud
• Write the fifteen words out by hand — writing fixes them better than reading
• Use three of the sentences the same day, even if only to yourself
• Do not move on until you can recall this vocabulary without looking

Where this lesson sits in the series

The series is twelve lessons in a deliberate order: each builds on the grammar and the vocabulary of the one before it. This is lesson 8 of twelve. Do not skip between them — skipping is the first cause of stalling at A1.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between müssen and sollen?
müssen is an unavoidable necessity; sollen is an instruction or advice from someone else: "the doctor told me to drink water".

And between wollen and möchten?
wollen is plain will and can sound blunt in a request; möchten is softer and fits a shop or an office.

Where does the main verb go?
To the end of the sentence, bare and unconjugated: Ich kann heute nicht arbeiten.

Do I need zu before the final verb?
No. After a modal the verb stands bare, without zu — a very common beginner error.

Watch the video

The video is on the OK+ channel on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=na9c49HRxW8

Also on OK+

• Learn German A1 – Lesson 7: In the town
• Learn German A1 – Lesson 9: At the doctor
• Fifty German verbs – part one

A tool that shortens the road

The OK Plus DE app gathers German administrative calculators and form templates in one place, free, ad-free, in seven languages. Android and iPhone, from the same page:
Get the OK Plus DE app